Cost of Living in Cebu

I am a frugal foreigner living in PH. Here are my costs - Rent for 1 bedroom condo in a middle tier developer (35k PHP), utilities (5k PHP), food (20k PHP), Gym (2.5k PHP), health care (5k PHP), Entertainment which is mostly paying for dates with my gf (20k PHP), buying stuff (10k PHP), other (16.5k PHP).

Cebu City is expensive. And the above is with me living alone...I can only imagine how expensive it is for those with families.

It's so strange how prices in Cebu are a third higher than in Malaysia, where the infrastructure is so much more developed. And it's not just infrastructure – Malaysians can speak English better, have better food choices, better Internet connection, better Flight connections, better housing, better everything.

In other countries you are respected as a tourist and people don't try to take advantage of you. But in the Philippines there are so many bad people trying to rip off foreigners. They see you and immediately think "I will charge this guy 5 times the normal price". So you end up paying to drive a crappy 30-year-old tricycle that can barely move more than an expensive Tesla in other countries. I can't remember any other country where I've seen so many scammers as in the Philippines.

The Philippines as a country is a joke. Want to go to the beach? Be prepared to pay environmental fees to enter the area, then another fee to park, then another fee to change clothes in a room and so on... I saw more motorcycle accidents in one week than in the West in the last 10 years. The internet doesn't work, the food is the worst on the planet, etc. but the Filipinos are fine with it. They keep electing criminals to government positions because they saw some Tiktok video where a paid influencer said they should vote for this guy. This country is beyond redemption.

This country is so crazy, I can't find the words to describe it. For example, if you want to change money, in many smaller cities they will only accept bills in absolutely perfect condition. They will not accept it if your note has the slightest scratch on it. Internet is terrible and works worse than in Antarctica. The prices are the highest in the SEA region, but the service is much worse than in most of these countries. People are very uneducated, many taxi drivers don't know how to use a map... Girls there are slowly becoming as entitled as in the West, only their looks are not even close to that level. A lot of public toilets don't have paper, just water sprayers or something... I could tell you a million other reasons, but I don't think it's allowed to write so much text there.

Ok, so for everyone to know. Philippines are so overpriced. Everything is 2, maybe 3 times more expensive than in Europe.
I live here and all i can say is that for a studio, which is positioned in bad area, because they are all bad, in middle of barangas, (poor people neighbourhood), price is 450$ without expenses
Now, only reason Americans come here is to sleep with young girls, because with money here, you can do whatever you want. Americans don't have lives in their own country and we all know that. Here they act big shoots even they can barely afford this life.
Philippians are cheap, you can sleep with any girl. Also you can find decent girls but mostly not.
Philippine guys are all hustlers! All of them , so you will have everyone trying to hustle you,you must be smart.
Everybody are nice but because they want your money, so basically hypocrites.
Groceries are incredibly expensive, for example, 10$ for kg of onions...
Enjoy your stay

A Good apartment in Cebu city centre is about 25,000 (2 bedroom with pool). Plus bills ie Electric/ WiFi & water...on top
Cheap if you eat local food ..70,000 pesos needed for none drinkers / smoker couple.

To those comments who don't like in cebu, please don't come back & go to CHINA Leave there, I think you are free in CHINA. Some are talking about the Duterd he is not forever leader in this Country, he follow how corrupt leader in America not to go to jail. You know what I mean, THINK

Hey Anonymous post November 27. You don't live in the Philippines at all so cut the BS you philippino.All foreigners know how Philippine citizens really are especially philippinas.They will jump in bed with their relatives for a few pesos but philippinas normally give it away for free to relatives.

The Philippines is a nation of unique people, where the one-eyed man is king in the land of the blind.
In the Philippines you throw a dead bacteria on the street and it will multiply.
In the West, if you are not prepared for the winter you die of hunger and cold.
This is what sets cultures apart, the effort it takes to live.
Everything comes easy and people are easily pleased.
This is a culture of relationships not logic. Doing it right is not a priority. Doing it wrong is a chance to work another day.
One thing that is amazing is that everything is done by taking it easy.
If you are logical, result oriented and structured, stay away, you will die of stress.
If you want to take another look at life and live at a soft pace and you have what it takes to support yourself, find a wife, find a beach or a mountain, grow vegetables, have a chicken and a goat and live the life.
Every culture has its special treats and unpleasantries.
The Philippines and Cebu give you a blend of highly organized chaos and a way of life where simple things bring happiness.